The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-07-23
BELL IN THE CANYON

Nto York Sun. EWiRi FAY,
There Is nothing that shntteru courage,
chils tho heart, and paralyzea the nervea
as surely assome irexplicable sound. The
brain that conceived "the wandering
voice" struck tho keynote Of terror. Thu
story Of John Whichor's bell Is o case in
poiut. ~ .4a I, KS
The Whichers were family Of strong
common senne and indomitable animal
courage. One Of the cons WAS a pinker.
ton detective, and years Ego went into
Jackaou county, Missouri, to hunt down
tho James gang. He WAS captured by
them, tied to tree, and shot to death be-
cauae he stubbornly refused 10 turn in.
former. Another Of the boya fell into
The hands Of Indians in Arizona and died
at the stake. A third son, John Whichor,
was printer, and back in 1880 was fore.
man OF tho Lendville Chronicle. He was
fine, manly fellow, straight as string, elk
feet high, aud after while he took tho
mine fever and went over into the Gunni.
son country on prospecting expedition.
He wac all alone, carrying his pick,
shovel, and Winchester, and good deal
Of desnltory wandering took him finally
into little canyon, whs!e no found d
promising "outcropping,"E and went to
work to locate claim. 2
It was desolats place, but beautiful in
q wild, rugged WY. On either eide Of tho
valley that formed the bosom Of the canyon
the mountains sloped up and up until tha
blue tops merged into tho blue sky, while
on the rocky and granit.strewn activity
no living thing found root. No name ex-
listed there; the blue birds never few
across the place. and it WAS so sheltered
from currents Of air that even the wind
had no voice. This dreadful and unnatu-
raj stiffness WAS the first thing that i'm,
pressed itself upon Whicher. Particular
ly at nighttime, when the atars. differing
and lroaty as they always aeem in these
attitudes, crowded the SKY, he would BIT
in iron! OF his cabin, and the ailence
would grow 80 vast and profound that the
beating OF his own heart would drum in
bis ear like q trip. hammer. He was not
an imaginative man, but gradually an awe
oil this solitude grew upon him. And gfa-
dually, IS he aitsrwsyd told the story, an
other feeling grew in. The roch-rlbbed
gorge began 70 assume certain familiar.
lily, ga though he had eeen the place some
time .beiors and only partially remember
ed it, and he could not shake oil subtle
impression that he was about to hear or
see something that would make his recol-
ton plain. s.&..l 5.5. Il, ii'&
There was no human being within 200
miles, and sewers! times he was on the
point of abandoning the claim and going
to one Of the northern camps. But be.
fore he could make up his mind he struck
an extraordinary formation. It was q
sort OF dacompo5ed quartz, faxed and
licked with gold in Jumps as big as pin
heads aud ragged threndH that geemud to
have bsen melted st ono time and run
through it.. Whicher was enough OF q
miner to know that it wouldn't take much
Of this 10 make him rich, and he worked
with feverish haste, nncoyering the ledge.
The second day SITTER the discovory he was
at the bottom OF bis shallow shalt when he
suddenly became aware that he was hear
ing a bell ringing. How long be had been
unconscioualy listening to it he did not
know, but the thought flashed upon him
that there could hs no bell within weeks
journey OF the spot. Still, he could hear
it diRtinctly, taint and far, yet perfectly
plain. 1t sounded like a church bell. n?
Whicher spraug out OF the shaft and
stood listening. The sound confused him,
and he could not tell exactly from what
direction it came. 1t aee.ned now north,
now south, and now somewhere above
him, tolling slowly, slowly, and 30 faint
that after each pulsatiou be WAS sure he
iancied until he heard the next. While
he stood there tho tolling ceased. .,L}
Tho excitement Of the mine had passed
away from him like fever from sick
man. A sort Of inertia crept over him,
and he dropped his pick and ldled for tho
rest Of the day, thinking about tho bell.
As yet he WIS not afraid, but when that
night he heard the slow, rythmic tolling
once more, he felt sn icy creeping in his
scalp and turned sick With dread. He
Ras afraid OF himself, afraid Of the awful
solitude, and afraid to BIO alone with that
spectral sound. He knew that it could be
no bell, knew that it must be 9 hsllucina.
tiont yet before it stopped be went nearly
mad. u. 5,55 XII = islf
The next time he heard It WAS in the
afternoon. He stared about him and the
old senae oil familiarity returned tenfold.
The granite gorge seemed trimming with
some horrible seCret it was about to tell.
He feared to look behind him, and some
awful presence seemed to Turk in the very
air. Still the bell kept tolling. Before it
ceased Whicher was flying out Of tho
canyon, haggard, muttering to himself,
and clapping bis hands to bis ears He
made his way to Gunnison City, starting
up at night to hurry on, ind pushing over
the almost impenetrable country at such
q epeed that when no reached bis destina.
ton he was broken down, d wreck, and
was sick Tor weeks. He often talks Of the
client canyon and the ledge of gold and
says that he will 20 back some day, and
not alone. But when he speaks condden.
tisily OF 1t he admits that cold horror
siezea hold OF him at tho bare thought Of
reyiaiting the spot. The story Of the
mine was verified by pieces OF quartz that
he brought back, and many hsvo searched
for it unsuccesstully since. Is ~ e
ii Bogus Silver Certificates. III
St,r York Special IA 4, q.
The bogus twenty.dollar silver cer!ia-
Gates OF the series OF 1880 have made their
appearance again in this vicinity. Theae
certificates first appeared in 1888, and
| sfav nj lot ~, 10, 1 n.